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And with that in mind, I wrote this blog with some inside tips to boost your efforts in time for the heat. Read up, hit the gym, and prepare to have the best summer body ever!

1. Begin Training Now
No time like the present, right? Most of our clients dedicate two to three months before summer starts to get fit, but you can see muscle definition as soon as four weeks—meaning now is the optimal time to dive into your new strength-training routine. (Just be careful not to overdo it in the next few weeks—I’ll share another blog that teaches you how to measure your workouts ;-).)

2. Speed Up Your Workouts
If you want to tone up fast (i.e., by pool time), give yourself a 30-second rest maximum between sets. I always say three sets for however many reps you can handle per exercise is standard. That will keep your heart rate up—and the less room your body has to calm down (safely and without exhausting yourself), the more calories you’ll burn in a shorter amount of time.

3. Add Weight to Core Exercises
If your goal is to slim your stomach in time for bikini season, add more resistance to your core exercises. I suggests using a heavy object to test the stability of your abs and put more emphasis on strengthening those muscles. (One option: the Medicine Ball V-ups) Hello, bikini belly!

4. Do More Lower-Body Moves
Besides scoring a butt that looks amazing in a teeny-weeny bikini, working your lower half means you’re exercising some of your biggest muscle groups: your glutes and quads. Spot toning this area can fire up your metabolism because working these specific muscles requires more energy than working other regions of your body. Deadlifts, Back Squats, and lunges do the trick, or try any other lower-body workouts. These are a must at our training facility!

5. Work Your Entire Body at Once
Why stop with your belly and bum? Total-body workouts require head-to-toe effort so that you tone every inch—and do it way faster than targeting single muscle groups per workout. Try compound moves such as the Dumbbell Squat to Overhead Press or the Lateral Lunge and Press to target multiple muscles simultaneously.

There you have it my friends; 5 tips For Summer Body!

If you are looking to finally GET that Summer Body you’ve always wanted, join our signature “Bikini Bootcamp”. APPLY HERE or reach out to us via phone at 714-768-4858 or via email at gonzalo@mytrimfintess.com.

I know first hand how hard it is to find the positives in many situations. Especially when it is so hot and humid, cold out, raining hard, or we are back to the grind of daily work after an outstanding weekend. In this post, I have outlined some ways to help you “Get Your Mind Right” and be more positive on a daily basis! Time to clean up your stinking thinking, get your mind right, and start making this your best year yet!

———

“3 Ways To Get Your Mind Right”

We are almost done with the first quarter of 2017 and many of you probably have already given up on some resolution goals you had for 2017. Resolutions will only be met if we have an optimistic state of mind. An optimistic mind is going to give our brain more opportunities to be creative, giving us more and more chances to be successful. While a pessimistic state of mind causes the brain to feel threatened, closing it off to new opportunities to grow. It is critical to keep a positive state of mind all year round, but it is especially important at the beginning of each goal we set. We cannot fall into the trap of negativity, so here are 3 easy ways to be more positive on a daily basis.

“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” ~Winston Churchill

1. Surround Yourself By Positive People

– What does your surrounding crowd look like? Are you always being fed a plate of negativity? If you are, maybe it is time for a change. Look at your job, look at your friends. Everything and everyone in your life should make you a better person.

2. Use Entertainment As Inspiration

– We don’t realize how much entertainment affects our lives. What kind of music do you listen to? What kind of videos are you watching? Don’t use YOUTUBE as a time waster, use it to watch something with meaning, something with inspiration. There is an unlimited resource of motivational entertainment. To start you on the right track, search for Eric Thomas, Les Brown, etc. Here is a link to one of my favorites as I watch it every weekend: https://youtu.be/G05QtiHP1lI

3. Read

– The excuse’s are always “reading is too time consuming”, “I don’t have time to read”. We get 24 hours in a day ladies and gentlemen. Block out 30-45 minutes each day to read. You don’t have to read an entire book each day. Make your goal to read one book per month. Pick out something with inspiration or meaning. Whether it be a book by a motivational author, or the bible for example. Learning the sacrifices God made will bring more hope and unselfish meaning to your life everyday.

Use these three ways to build a better foundation of waking up every morning with determination to give your absolute best effort in everything you do. Even the little things we take for granted, do them to the best of your ability and you will start to see everything in your life start to change.

If you are looking to finally brake the negative mindset and want to become a better version of yourself, we will inspire you and help you accomplish your goals. Reach out to us via phone at 714-768-4858 or via email at gonzalo@mytrimfintess.com.

Where do I start? Do I give you advice on how to make your life easier; or do I encourage you to stay on the path you are on? Do I help you to avoid the challenges, pain and adversity that you faced; or do I push you down a path of even more adversity and challenge? Do I try and change the choices that you have made? Ultimately, all those choices have made me who I am today.

If I could give you some advice, it would be these couple things.

TRUST
I know you feel like your life is being flipped upside down and that you will never be able to get up off your back. It seems as if you are the only one struggling with whatever is going on and that everyone else is thriving. You doubt yourself, your abilities, your blessings and your purpose. You feel as if everyone is much higher than you, further down the road, and better than you. You feel hurt, confused and lost. What I want you to do is step back, close your eyes, and say the following… “Thank you, I trust you”.

All of those scenarios are going to happen, and will continually happen in life. If you don’t have adversity in life, it either means you aren’t growing; or you are dead. Be thankful for the fact that you are alive to face the struggle! Let’s switch our mindset and realize that every struggle, doubt and bit of adversity is really just an opportunity. It is an opportunity to get better and to see what you are made of. It is a chance to develop skills that you don’t currently have. You might be in the midst of an amazing lesson or set of lessons, which are developing perseverance, faith, attentiveness, action, focus, patience, love, understanding and trust. I want you to trust in your faith and that everything that you are going through is designed to prepare you for a bigger purpose that you don’t even see or believe yet. Trust the process! Trust the path on which you are walking is designed to help grow you to make an impact on this world!

CHERISH

I know you are going through big challenges right now! You are facing challenges with work, family, friends, finances and finding the right path to go down. Discomfort, nervousness, uneasiness and doubt fill your head daily. Let me give you a hint and a heads up… adversity is coming! You are going to keep facing adversity and it will come in waves bigger than you think you can stand up against! When these moments come along, as hard as it will be, I want you to Cherish The Challenges.

I know you think I am crazy right about now, saying, “Why would I love the challenges?” It is because every moment that you get challenged, you can get better. You have the opportunity to grow into something more beautiful, strong and resilient than you were before. A way to realize that you will be okay is to sit down, pull out a piece of paper and begin writing. I want you to write out all of the blessings in your life. This could be as simple as the fact that you have a roof over your head, food to eat and someone who loves you. This will remind you that you have amazing blessings in every area of your life that are taken for granted. If you reflect on it, I bet you will even find that many of your blessings only came about because of times of adversity. Post this note, look at it, let it fill you up in those moments of doubt, fear and struggle. Knowing you have all these blessings will make it easier to appreciate the challenges when they come. You will see that many times an amazing blessing is right on the other side of the adversity. You don’t get to enjoy the view from the top of the mountain without the journey to the top. The more difficult the journey, the more you appreciate and have earned the view!

SERVE
Right now, I know you are in survival mode. I know you are feeling like you don’t have enough time in the day for yourself! Making it through school, dealing with social cliques, the latest fashion trends and social media musings is hard enough; let alone thinking about someone else! The time taken up by school, homework, sports, jobs, take home work is more than you feel like you can handle. When the stress of life begins to pile up, I want you to sit back and focus on the one person you can help in life. I know this defies logic, but do it.

Who is the one person you can help today? Prioritize making a difference in their day. The most amazing thing happens when you do this. When you look to serve someone else, it fills you up with joy and gives you that spiritual and emotional lift you have been looking for. When you make this the priority, all the other inconsequential tasks that you were stressing about melt away. They no longer carry any weight on your mind because you now have focus, clarity and purpose. What better thing to focus on than changing someone else’s life. While changing and impacting their life in a positive way, it is also changing and IMPACTing you. Making an IMPACT doesn’t have to be anything big! It can start small by sending them a hand written note and letting them know what they mean to you. It could be physically helping them with a task or just taking the time to listen. It is amazing how looking to serve someone else lifts your spirits and reenergizes you!

I know you want all the answers to your problems, but my answer is, you will make it! At the end of the day, all of the struggles that you are going to face are going to make you who you are, and I don’t want to deprive you of any of them! They will help define you and build you up into the person you will become. This life wasn’t meant or designed to be a walk in the park. It was meant to help you grow and push you to become the best version of yourself! You never know how you may one day be able to change someone’s life because you can help them through a challenge that you have already persevered through! Trust in the process and cherish the challenges that come your way so that you can better serve those around you! Make everybody you meet better for having interacted with you!

God Bless
– To a younger me… From an older me

Ps. Whenever you doubt, Read this and press it upon your heart!“2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1: 2-4

“What tips do you have for staying on track with New Year’s fitness goals?”

First of all, don’t set a time limit for them. Getting ripped abs in six weeks may be possible, but it isn’t necessarily doable, given the intangibles of life. “We don’t control time,” says my friend and life coach Brian Grasso. Giving yourself an ultimatum and failing to meet it through no fault of your own will just make you feel like a failure and want to quit outright.

Second, let technology serve you. There are plenty of great fitness tracking devices that make it easy to record and interpret data from your workouts, nutrition, and lifestyle. I’ve been using the Fitbit Charge (fitbit.com) to track my sleep patterns, and it’s made me realize that I don’t sleep through the night without interruption, so that’s a problem I need to address (maybe stop drinking coffee earlier in the day, or invest in a new pillow?). It also works as a pedometer and syncs wirelessly with a smartphone (iPhone or Android) and computer.

Finally, make sure you’re motivated by positive thinking, not a desire to silence doubters. Telling yourself you’ll get abs so you can show everyone who called you “fat” who’s boss doesn’t work. Do it because you want to, for yourself alone.

It’s that time of year again…time to focus on your New Year’s resolutions. Many people begin an exercise program, but abandon it before Easter. However, you can increase your chances for long-term success if you follow these five simple tips to achieve your fitness goals.

Determine Your Readiness

Make sure you’re both physically and mentally ready to start an exercise program. Tell your doctor you want to begin a fitness regimen and you want to make sure you’re healthy enough to start. Once you have been physically cleared to proceed, consider your mental readiness. How likely are you to stick with an exercise program once you begin? While there are many factors to consider, three are most significant.

You are more likely to succeed if you:

Have confidence in your exercise ability.

Receive encouragement and

support from those closest to you.

Participate in an enjoyable form of exercise.

Create a Plan

Before you start your exercise

program, answer three questions. First, when will you exercise? Identify three days and times that are convenient for you and stick with those days so you are working out at the same time each week. Second, what type of exercise will you do? The best type of exercise is one you enjoy. Don’t worry about what everyone else is doing; pick an exercise that works for you. Choose from activities such as walking, cycling, running, swimming, weightlifting, skating, dancing, golf, handball, tennis and basketball. Third, how much time will you spend exercising? Start with as little as 10 minutes per session and slowly build up to at least 30 minutes per workout.

Bring a Friend

You may know someone who resolved to start exercising in the New Year. Begin your fitness journey together. It will increase your chances for success and you’ll have more fun. For this to work, you have to find an exercise that both of you enjoy. This might be a challenge, but it’s worth it since an exercise partner provides you with a support system, a positive social experience and inspiration. There will be times when you don’t feel like working out and a partner can be just the motivation you need to get going.

Take It Easy

Think of your resolution as a lifelong commitment to a healthier lifestyle. You are much more likely to be successful if you take it easy at the beginning. For instance, you may see people exercising at a very high intensity, but you should start with low-to-moderate intensity workouts. You may know people who train six days a week, but it’s fine to start with three. You may see people engage in a diverse array of physical activities, but a 15-minute walk three days a week is a great place to begin.

Be Realistic

One of the biggest problems with New Year’s resolutions is they can be extremely impractical. Setting goals is a great idea, but make sure they are realistic and feasible. For example, a goal to lose 12 lbs by Easter is both reasonable and achievable. So is a goal to complete a 5K run by tax day. Conversely, a goal to complete a marathon by that date is unrealistic and potentially unsafe for newbie runners. Think of it as if you were building a house. Start slow (i.e., low intensity and duration), develop a solid foundation of fitness and then build upon that foundation as your fitness improves.

If you are looking to finally brake the “resolution” vicious cycle and become a better version of yourself this 2017, we will inspire you and help you accomplish your goals. Reach out to us via phone at 714-768-4858 or via email at gonzalo@mytrimfintess.com.

Every day I get questions from people who’ve reached a plateau in their fitness journey. “Gonzalo, no matter what I do, my body doesn’t change and don’t see the scale move!”

Now, without going into much detail as to why you’ve reached a “Plateau”, here are 3 ways to breakthrough and start seeing results again.

1. Train in a fasted state.

If you’ve ever looked for advice on how to lose fat faster—and especially stubborn hip, belly, and thigh fat—you’ve probably read about exercising on an empty stomach.

According to many experts, training on an empty stomach is a simple but powerful way to increase the amount of fat your body burns while you work out.

There’s truth in this advice, but there’s also a problem: it’s not that simple. How empty of a stomach, exactly? What types of exercise work best? Are there any drawbacks?

2. Do high-intensity interval cardio.

High-intensity interval training, or HIIT for short, is a method of exercising where you alternate between periods of (almost) all-out intensity and low-intensity recovery.

The idea is simple: during your high-intensity bouts, you’re pushing yourself almost as hard as you can, and during your low-intensity periods, you’re trying to catch your breath in preparation for the next sprint.

The bottom line is HIIT is significantly more time effective for losing fat than traditional “low-intensity steady-state” cardio (LISS).

3. Lift heavy weights.

If you’re familiar with my work, you know that I’m a big proponent of heavy, compound weightlifting.

This type of training offers two big fat loss benefits.

1. It helps you preserve your strength while in a calorie deficit, which in turn helps you preserve your muscle.

2. It dramatically increases your basal metabolic rate for several days after each workout, and research shows this type of training can result in hundreds of more calories burned than workouts performed with lighter weights.

Another noteworthy benefit of heavy, compound training is the simple fact that most people find it more enjoyable than high-rep, “feel the burn” workouts, and more enjoyable workouts means better long-term compliance and progression.

At TRIM Fitness Menifee, we know exactly how to help you apply this complex science in an simple and efficient way every single time you’re with us. Our results with hundreds of our clients prove the program works. We offer a range of fitness solutions including team training, semi-private training, group fitness classes led by incredible Coaches.

Did you know there are some “outside” factors that impact your progress???

For most of us, the most challenging part of achieving the results we’re looking for with our new workout and nutrition program appears to be coming up with the plan to begin with and then making the concentrated effort to stick with it.

If you’re not performing regular workouts or if you are frequently ‘cheating’ on your nutrition that’s when you’re going to see progress take a nosedive as you no longer see any type of success.

In addition to the nutrition and workout program however, there are other factors that can influence your performance as well – what are commonly referred to as ‘lifestyle’ factors. Making sure not to neglect these will also be incredibly important.

Remember, this journey is permanent mindset change in LIFESTYLE!

Here are the 3 main ones to keep in mind:

1. Stress

The first main thing that can have quite an impact on how you do with your efforts towards your goal is the amount of stress you’re experiencing on a day to day basis. Those who are very stressed out are going to find that they not only don’t have the energy to workout but they will also feel hungrier during the day.

Obviously hunger control tends to be one of the maker or breakers of any diet as when you’re ravenous will power really goes out the window.

Feeling stress also puts you in an overall negative emotional mindset which will decrease your feelings of your ability to stick with the workout program and diet.

As much as you can, find healthy, productive ways to handle your stress so it doesn’t impact your progress.

2. Sleep

Next, sleep is another key element necessary for great results. Whether you want to build more muscle mass or lose body fat, sleep is a must. Sleep is the primary time when the body will work extremely hard repairing and rebuilding your torn down muscle tissue, so if you short yourself on this, you’re going to find it takes you longer to feel well between sessions.

Additionally, if you’re staying awake longer each day and sleeping less, this also sends a signal to the brain that the body has a higher glucose requirement (often sleepiness is mistaken for hunger) and since you’re up rather than asleep you may find yourself eating more.

Getting at least seven hours, preferably eight, should be mandatory for those who are looking to make positive changes in their body.

3. Personal Support

Finally, the last thing that will have an impact on your overall progress is the personal support you’re getting from others. Those who don’t live in supportive environments or have family who are constantly nagging at them because they are preparing different meals or refusing to eat the new recipes being tried will really struggle to stick with it.

If instead you have a bunch of people around you who take interest in your goal and do anything they can to help you out along the way, you’ll have a much easier time.

Keep in mind too, that sometimes an unsupportive environment at home can be overcome by finding friends who are very much working towards similar goals. You can workout with them and they will be the positive influence you need.

It’s a sad situation when the people you love and care about aren’t encouraging for you but it is something some people need to be prepared to address. If you try hard enough, usually such as situation can be overcome in the long run.

Being sure to fall in love with the journey and take the most well-rounded approach to your fat loss will get you to the finish line looking and feeling the best. Don’t just focus on “diet and exercise”. These are definitely two extremely important factors but it really is about everything altogether that you’re doing.

If you are looking to for ways to release stress, get better sleep, and find a supportive environment, and finally achieve your goals; our 8-Week Mommy Makeover Program will give you just that. Reach out to us via phone at 714-768-4858, via email at gonzalo@mytrimfintess.com, or click here to APPLY.

Picture this; it is Friday night and you are out at a local restaurant and feel overwhelmed with the options on the menu.

One of the biggest detriments to any “dieter’s” best efforts is the beloved restaurant meal. You’ve been working hard all week, sticking to your meal plan, but then the weekend hits and someone – your spouse, your friend, or your co-workers, decide a meal out is in order.

What used to cause some excitement, now causes quite a stir of anxiety. If you’ve ever had a look at some of the nutrient tables of the foods dished up in a restaurant, you know exactly what kind of trouble you’re in for.

Sticking with a lower calorie/healthier fat loss plan can seem like next to impossible in many places, which is why you must plan your strategy carefully.

Here are some quick tips that you should definitely start paying attention to.

Try And Order Raw

One quick trick that is fairly simply to follow to use is to always think ‘raw’. Now, I’m not suggesting you order your steak blue rare, but what I’m suggesting is that you try and order something that doesn’t require a lot of cooking.

A salad is the perfect example. Or, a wrap that easily allows you to request only certain ingredients be included is another good option.

The reason for going raw like this is because it eliminates the chances of loads of butter or oil being added throughout the cooking process. Often this is one of the big factors that makes restaurant meals so disastrous, so if you’re ordering something that doesn’t need to be cooked, you eliminate this problem entirely.

Just watch what you get with the dish – for salads for example you want to avoid a lot of added cheese, croutons, bacon bits, dried fruit, or high volumes of nuts. Limiting these however is much easier than requesting changes to the cooking process, which you’ll never be 100% certain actually took place.

Watch The Sauces

Second, you also must be sure you’re watching the sauces that get added to your meal. This is another very sneaky way that calories enter the picture. Usually creamy sauces will be the biggest culprit, however you should also caution yourself against tomato based sauces as well as sometimes they can have a lot of oil added in.

In order to be safe, stick with the tomato sauce (it’s far safer than a cream based sauce) but ask to have it in limited proportions. This will help to prevent the calories from building and keep everything under control.

Stay Away From Sandwiches

Next, you should also make sure that you’re staying away from sandwiches. These typically tend to be quite bad on the diet because of the amount of bread that’s used. Usually it is very thickly cut slices that are used which really increase the overall calorie value.

If you’re going to order a sandwich, consider removing the top slice of bread to reduce the overall calorie and carbohydrate count.

Order Off The Menu

Finally, the last way to control the calorie intake that you’re getting when eating out is to order off the menu. Many people either don’t realize they can do this or shy away from doing it because they are scared to ask.

Don’t be. Almost all restaurants will be able to cook you a simple chicken breast with steamed vegetables (ask for no butter), mixed grees or spinach along with a baked sweet potato and salsa, which makes for a great fat loss meal to have.

Navigating the restaurant menu doesn’t have to be a huge challenge if you remember these tips and do your best to order wisely. The small changes really do make a huge difference in your ability to see progress.

Now you know what to do while out this upcoming weekend!!

If you are looking to lose fat and inches, drop dress/pants sizes, improve mobility and flexibility, increase strength and energy, relieve stress and pain, or simply become a better version of yourself, we will inspire you and help you accomplish your goals. Reach out to us via phone at 714-768-4858 or via email at gonzalo@mytrimfintess.com.

As a kid, I loved going back to school because I was excited to meet my new teachers, see my old friends and digest all the new learning. My mom, on the other hand, loved shipping us kids off to class not only out of enthusiasm for us, but also because it meant more time for her to work, do errands swiftly on her own and—perhaps most important—spend more solid time working out with less rushing.

This is the perfect time of year for parents to not only gear up the kids for a tighter schedule, but also to hone in on it themselves. Some parents have additional little ones in the household, while some are on their own during school hours. Similarly, some parents prefer working out at home or with friends, while others prefer the gym, the outdoors.

Depending on your specific situation and preferences, there are a plethora of effective, fun and fabulous options for getting your workouts in. The importance of taking care of your health first is best compared to the emergency advice on an airplane before takeoff: Put your oxygen mask on before assisting small children or others. Exercise matters. It matters a lot.

No matter your circumstances, inspire fitness with these three powerful strategies:

Schedule it.

Momentum is key for maintaining fitness, so recognizing the benefits and experiencing them on a regular basis is a wonderful, self-perpetuating positive feedback loop.

The more you stick to your workouts, the better you feel and the more eager you will be to continue feeling that fantastic. It’s a win-win cycle.

Exercise is extraordinary for enhancing energy to keep up with your kids and your life; for stimulating immune function so you can stay healthy; and for stress management.

Make “exercise appointments” at least four to six times per week, 30 to 60 minutes each, at home, at the gym or outdoors. Make your engagements specific, realistic and detailed.

If you only have a few minutes here and there, try these easy-to-do “7 at Home Workouts” I put together for you.

Find and do what you love most.

If you love dancing, dance. If you are inspired by a sport, play it. If moving lifting is invigorating, hit the weights. There are many methods of moving your body in a productive way.

The best exercises are the ones you enjoy doing and the ones you look forward to. If you prefer solo ventures, run, hike, walk, swim, bike outdoors or work out at the gym on your own.

If social support motivates you, take classes, enlist a friend in your fitness ambitions, hire a Coach and join a semi-private group. Motivate yourself with new clothing, a DVD, signing up for an event (such as a 5K, 10K, mud run or triathlon).

The process can morph and meld over time, which is part of the pleasure.

Emphasize all components of fitness by varying your workouts.

Variety is the spice of progress. Incorporate cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, balance and coordination by testing and playing in multiple manners. Up the ante with increasing duration, intensity and frequency.

There is always a way to kick it up a notch, and your body will recognize the difference. Make every move count. Want to focus on your abs? Try my “28-Day Flat Belly Formula” guaranteed to flatten your tummy!!

Remember that you’ll never regret exercising, and that it’s one of the best investments you can make in your physical and mental well-being. Make yourself a priority by committing to your fitness.

If you are looking to lose fat and inches, drop dress/pants sizes, improve mobility and flexibility, increase strength and energy, relieve stress and pain, or simply become a better version of yourself, we will inspire you and help you accomplish your goals. Reach out to us via phone at 714-768-4858 or via email at gonzalo@mytrimfintess.com.